Transcripts For CSPAN2 U.S. Senate U.S. Senate 20240711

To covering congress. Today in the Senate Lawmakers will debate the nomination of eileen cannon to be u. S. District court judge for the Southern District of florida. Votes are expected at noon eastern. Now live to the floor of the senate here on cspan2. The president pro tempore the senate will come to order. The chaplain, dr. Black, will open the senate in prayer. The chaplain let us pray. Eternal master, we honor you for your glory and strength. Your glory fills us with reverence and your strength inspires us with courage. Bless our lawmakers. Inspire them to find fulfillment in the splendor of holiness. Lord, remind them that you expect people of faith to illuminate the darkness of this world with exemplary actions that prompt people to glorify you. May our senators remember that their conduct, particularly during times of adversity, has longterm consequences. Lord, we praise you that you continue to rule our universe. We pray in your awesome name. Amen. The president pro tempore please join me in reciting the pledge of allegiance. I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of america, and to the republic for which it stands, one nation under god, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. Mr. Grassley mr. President. The presiding officer the senator from iowa. Mr. Grassley one minute for morning business. The presiding officer without objection. Mr. Grassley iowa is home for a lot of people that have heritage from the Czech Republic and the slovak republic. So november 17 is coming up pretty soon. It marks the 31st anniversary of the velvet revolution in czechoslovakia. In 1989, the czech people stood up against communist rule and through nonviolent demonstrations precipitated the nations transition to democracy. The velvet revolution lasted 41 days and in the end ended 41 years of communist control of czechoslovakia. Jingling keys became a symbol of the revolution and of the new doors that democracy and freedom from communism would unlock for those great people in czechoslovakia. Now we have two countries, the Czech Republic and the slovak republic. We also have a National Czech and slovak mnuchin in cedar rapids, iowa. That museum helps to educate americans about these events i just talked about and most importantly to teach them about the importance of never giving up on fighting for freedom. I yield the floor i yield the floor. Mr. Mcconnell mr. President. The presiding officer the majority leader. Mr. Mcconnell last week the country and the world received some really great news that weve longed for quite a while to hear. A major American Drug company, together with their german partner, announced that their candidate for a covid19 vaccine appears to be at least 90 effective in trials. That is 90 90 90 . Dr. Fauci called these preliminary results extraordinary. Another expert called the news, quote, as good as you could hope for. Of course, tests and trials are ongoing. The f. D. A. Will perform its own thorough review which will include analyzing months of safety data. The American People should rest assure there are appropriate and necessary measures to assure the safety and efficacy of any vaccine before it is rolled out to the American People. But this will proceed with the lifesaving urgency that is called for. Right now covid19 is has continued to spread across the country at rates that are not sustainable and which we must try to slow. Yesterday my home state of kentucky just logged our highestever daily total, 2,700 new cases. The Positivity Rate of our tests is the highest since early may. Its urgent that all americans continue the smart steps that have gotten us this far, wearing masks, social distancing, adapting our plans and our routines. This virus is not going to magically leave us alone if we decide were fed up with taking precautions. But thank god and thanks to the brilliant scientists we may look back on this hopeful announcement as the beginning of the end of this terrible ordeal. I said back in march that our country was about to meet a whole lot of brandnew heroes, many were going to be doctors and nurses, others were going to be essential workers who kept society going, and some are going to be the men and women who worked like crazy in labs and Research Centers until we had this virus beat. But every single american has a role. As cases continue to climb, the simple advice, wear a mask, practice social distancing, wash your hands are now just as important as ever. So, of course, mr. President , discovering the vaccine will only be a part of the battle. Once one or more candidates have been proven effective and safe, it will be a second herculean undertaking to distribute doses of the vaccine throughout our country. This is why this senate and the Trump Administration have been on the case for months. As part of the historic cares act we created operation warp speed, an historic effort that combined interagency government work with private partnerships. This was a 21st century Manhattan Project for a covid vaccine. We helped to fund several firms. We committed billions of dollars in advanced purchase agreements. We flattening regulatory barriers to speed the process, we provided backing so companies could begin mass producing vaccine doses before Clinical Trials fully concluded so wed have a head start on whichever ones wound out working. If we stay on track, we will have a vaccine in a time frame that is absolutely historic. Absolutely historic. President Trumps Administration and this congress should take huge pride in the groundwork that we laid. Now, strangely enough, mr. President , some are finding it challenging to simply applaud this unambiguous good news. The democratic governor of new york opined a few days ago that it was, quote, bad news that a vaccine breakthrough may have been reached because President Trump is still in office. Now, i understand Governor Cuomo has written a selfcongratulatory book on leadership. This after his own state has been pummeled by the disease and his own administration intentionally sent thousands of covid19 positive patients into vulnerable nursing homes. The governor has the temerity to say this vaccine breakthrough is partially bad news. Partially bad news . Because it occurred under the Trump Administration. He gestured vaguely toward unspecified concerns about distribution. I guess he would have preferred the lifesaving breakthroughs be delayed longer with more american deaths in the meantime. The irony, as our colleague, the senior senator from tennessee, has pointed out is that the plans that are in place put states in the drivers seat for arranging distribution and making sure the most vulnerable citizens receive access. The federal government is there to provide guidance and support. As senator alexander said, the governor of new york might want to devote more time and attention to developing this crucial plan rather than undermining Public Confidence for the sake of politics. Sadly, this isnt anything new. Just a few weeks ago the democratic governors of both new york and california both began openly second guessing the food and Drug Administration and doubting its ability to assess the safety of a vaccine. There was suggestions that blue states may set up their own state review boards and with hold lifesaving vaccines for their own people, for who knows how long, until this extra obstacle had been hurdled. This is why this is where they are. Vaccines arent vaccines if a republican is president until new york and california reinvent their own miniature f. D. A. s. To be clear, americans purchased nearly four billion prescriptions every single year four billion prescriptions. Trusting the expertise and professionalism of the f. D. A. That is the trusted authority. Nobodys crying out for liberal governors to add their own good House Keeping seal of approval let alone potentially delay the end of covid19 to do so. If this vaccine proves to be the one, citizens in new york and california should not have it withheld from them because their governors care more about opposing President Trump than about hard science. This reminds me of when the junior senator from california declared back in september during her Vice President ial campaign that she might hesitate to trust a vaccine. The whole the whole country understands that our democratic friends are not charter members of the donald trump fan club. We know that. They do not need to dabble in the early stages of antivac conspiracy theories to prove it. In fact, for the sake of Public Health and Public Confidence and saving lives, they have a moral obligation to stop it. If a vaccine has been found and distribution can begin soon, thats good news, not bad news. It would be a major victory for our country and the world, fueled fueled by American Innovation and aided by project warp speed thanks to this senate and this Trump Administration. It would save thousands and thousands of american lives and Public Confidence will be essential. So heres where we are. Leaders on all sides on all sides have a duty to act accordingly. The presiding officer under the previous order, the leadership time is reserved. Morning business is closed. Under the previous order, the senate will proceed to executive session to resume consideration of the following nomination, which the clerk will report. The clerk nomination, the judiciary, Aileen Mercedes cannon, of florida, to be United States district judge for the Southern District of florida. Mr. Mcconnell i suggest the absence of a quorum. The presiding officer the clerk will call the roll. Quorum quorum call quorum call a senator mr. President . The presiding officer the senator from maryland. Mr. Van hollen thank you, mr. President. The presiding officer were in a quorum call. Mr. Van hollen mr. President , i ask that the quorum call be suspended. The presiding officer without objection. Mr. Van hollen thank you, mr. President. Yesterday we came together as a country, not as republicans, not as democrats or independents but as americans to recognize the service and sacrifice of our veterans, men and women who served in uniform to protect our country and to defend our democracy. Mr. President , the ongoing attacks that President Trump has launched on our democracy is an insult to those who have sacrificed so much to defend it. And so, too, is the complicity of so Many Republican senators right here in this body who through their silence or active incitement are spreading Donald Trumps absurd false narrative that he won the election. Each of us, each of us in this body has sworn an oath to protect and defend the constitution of the United States, to stand up for our democracy, to support the peaceful transfer of power established there. My colleague, it is time for every senator to do your sworn duty and stand up for the constitution and for our democracy. Make no mistake, on january 20, joe biden will be sworn in as the next president of the United States and Kamala Harris will be sworn in as the next Vice President of the United States. But that does not mean that what donald trump is doing now is harmless. That does not mean that the silence or active complicity of so Many Republican senators is harmless. It is down right dangerous to the health of our democracy and to our National Security interests. We have enough challenges protecting our democracy from foreign enemies and foreign adversaries who seek every day to undermine faith and confidence in democratic institutions. Here in the United States and other democracies around the world. The last thing we need is for people to attack that confidence from within the United States. This is doing harm, mr. President , in the short term and the long term to our National Security, putting us at risk. In the short term, we are seeing a very dangerous purge of top National Security officials at the Defense Department and other places. These are officials with whom i have many policy differences, but they are competent managers, they are qualified individuals, and what youre seeing this president do in the death throes of his administration is purging those qualified individuals and replacing them with people whose only credentials is loyalty to President Trump. Replacing competent, qualified individuals with political lackeys. That is dangerous at any time. Its especially dangerous to mess around with the top leadership of our National Security agencies during a transition to power. Thats what the 9 11 commission told us. And yet what youre seeing President Trump do is play with matches when it comes to our National Security. To put personal political peeves above the National Security interests of the United States. In addition to purging individuals from some of our top National Security agencies, the president is prohibiting the government of the United States which belongs to the people of the United States from providing daily Intelligence Briefings and other Intelligence Briefings to the incoming president , president elect joe biden. Now, we all know that President Trump has been notorious for not being interested in those Intelligence Briefings, but i think all of us who know joe biden from the time he served as senator and Vice President , we know he takes these things seriously and he takes threats that might be learned through those Intelligence Briefings seriously. And to deny the next president of the United States access to those briefings which is part of the tradition, part of the rules that weve developed to ensure steady transfer and making sure the next president has the information needed on day one, that is outright grossly negligent when it comes to our National Security. And its time for our Senate Republican colleague to be speaking out loudly about that. That, of course, is part of the consequence of the fact that the General Services administration has been unwilling to provide the traditional funds to support the peaceful transfer of power. This is another gross abuse of the government which belongs to the people of the United States, not to donald trump. In addition, you have the secretary of state, secretary pompeo, instructing the department of state not to pass along messages from foreign leaders to the next president of the United States, president elect joe biden. Again, another gross abuse of power and of course secretary pompeo undermined this faith in our transition to democracy himself when he talked about the fact that were transitioning to the second trump term. This is the person, this is the individual who is supposed to represent the United States of america overseas, the person who is supposed to stand up for our democracy. And yet here at home, hes undermining faith in that democracy. And who does that give aid and comfort to . Our adversaries and enemies abroad, people who want our democracy to fail. I dont know if our republican colleagues have noticed who has congratulated the president elect joe biden and who has not among foreign leaders. Well, our democratic allies around the world have congratulated the next president of the United States joe biden. The united kingdom, france, germany, canada, the leaders of democratic governments and countries have all acknowledged that our democracy is working and that they are recognizing the next president of the United States. Who has refused so far to congrat late congratulate the next president of the United States joe biden . Vladimir putin, president xi, the leader of north korea. What President Trump is doing and what our republican colleagues are doing by their silence is aiding and abetting these authoritarian leaders. These guys are smiling. If youre a authoritarian leader, you want nothing more than to see democracy fail, to see that model fail. These are leaders who often have their own sort of election facades where they pretend to have a free and fair election. And then it turns out to be 90 for them. They are smiling at whats happening here. So i hope our Republican Senate colleagues are looking at the companies theyre keeping among foreign leaders who are watching us because the leaders of our democratic friends and ally allied countries have all recognized the outcome of this election, and its the leaders of russia and china and north korea and others who have not. That is the company that is being kept by so Many Republican senators today. And that is going to do ongoing damage to our ability around the world as the worlds oldest democracy to stand up for interests of liberty, freedom, and democracy. Mr. President , i fear that that is not even the most damaging thats happening as a result of this fraud thats been perpetrated on the American People. The biggest danger is undermining the confidence of the American People themselves, or large numbers of the American People, in the outcome this election, ceding this false narrative that somehow donald trump was actually the leader and joe biden was somehow an illegitimate president to be. If you look at the recent polling in the last 48 hours, what you find is that 70 of republicans believe this was not a free and fair election. Thats two times as many as before the election, and thats when donald trump was telling everybody that if he lost, that meant the election was rigged. Are we really, through our silence or sometimes encouragement, going to cede the idea that because donald trump lost the election it was rigged . All you have to do is look at the frivolous claims being made by courts around the United States and it is by democrats and republicans alike to realize what a charade this is. Joe biden, as a candidate, has said he wants to bring the country together. He and. Ms. Harris want to Kamala Harris are looking to bring us together on both sides of the aisle to address urgent matters before our country. Mr. Van hollen so i ask my Republican Senate colleagues, how are you going to take the extend hand of joe biden when youre telling so many of your constituents back at home that this an illegitimate election . How are you going to do that . What weve seen in the aftermath of this election is scary because we saw so many times over the last four years that our Republican Senate colleagues refused to stand up to the abuse of power of this administration, things that if the Obama Administration ever thought of doing, they would be out there every day crying foul and abuse of power. But everybody enabled that conduct and now after the election when joe biden is already over five million votes ahead on the National Vote and winning the electoral college, you would think this is a moment for everybody to come together to give the next president of the United States a chance. I think the scary thing, mr. President , what this shows is that the Republican Party has become the party of donald trump and i just urge my colleagues to think about the consequences of feeding into this fraud that donald trump was actually the one who was elected. Because what you will be saying there to the 72 pl americans who voted 72 million americans who voted for donald trump is that he is, in fact, the rightful president and he will therefore also continue to call the shots within the Republican Party. Hes doing that now even after hes lost an election. And so i just urge my colleagues to think about what they are doing each day that goes by that reinforces this false and fraudulent claim, how its harming our democracy, how its harming our National Security, how its going to impede joe bidens ability to reach out to our republican colleagues, not because he doesnt want to, he does, because you will have undermine your ability to do it by telling tens of millions of americans that somehow this was an illegitimate election. I ask i implore my colleagues to think more about this as every hour goes by because every hour that this lie continues and persists is another hour that youre harming the health of our democracy and our country. Thank you, mr. President. And i yield. A senator mr. President. The presiding officer the senator from south dakota. Mr. Thune mr. President , i ask unanimous consent that i be able to conclude my remarks and the senator from south dakota be able to conclude her remarks prior to the vote. The presiding officer without objection. Mr. Thune mr. President , this summer senator smith and i introduced the impact aid Coronavirus Relief act. This would provide much need to the students and given the strains to the ongoing pandemic, it cant be soon enough. School districts on military bases and tribal land can participate in the impact aid program, which includes nearly 40 School Districts in the state of south dakota. This program is a right is of vital importance to the Financial Wellbeing of these schools as it reimburses them for revenue shortfalls due to the reduction or absence of a local tax base because of the presence of federal property. In order to determine grant awards through this program, School Districts must anually calculate the number of federal students they have enrolled. During a pandemic conducting this kind of count has presented a new set of challenges for administrators. The impact aid Coronavirus Relief act is a common sense, bipartisan approach that would not cost a dime yet would provide Financial Stability to School Districts by allowing them to use last years student head counts on impact aid applications they are completing this fall. Doing so would prevent the reporting of noticeable declines in student enrollment which would lead to reduced impact aid payments next year. Distance learning has made collecting student data more challenging. Districts are experiencing declines in head count due to parents home schooling students during the pandemic. Unless last years student head count is allowed for this year, schools will have the undue burden of collecting this data during and otherwise challenging time and could experience a reduced payment next fall. This will ensure they will have certainty in the near term. Mr. President , a companion of our bill passed the house by unanimous consent on october 2, and impact aid School Districts are eager for the senate to do the same. And i hope that we can get that done today and i would yield to the senator from minnesota for some comments. A senator mr. President. The presiding officer the senator from minnesota. Ms. Smith mr. President , i rise in support of my colleague, senator thunes request, to pass h. R. 8472 by unanimous consent. As we continue to respond to the coronavirus pandemic, we need to support schools so that students can keep learning. And in congress we have a special obligation to federally impacted schools as my colleague senator thune has said, these are schools that are located in districts with a significant amount of nontaxable land which puts them at a significant advantage for raising education revenue. We provide direct federal payments which is crucial for their operation. What our bill does is to provide a commonsense change. It allows School Districts to use student counts from the previous Academic Year when they submit thairm pact aid their impact aid applications. And in light of the challenges of doing a safe and accurate count in the midst of this coronavirus pandemic, this only makes sense. So i want to thank my colleague from north dakota, senator thune. Ive been so glad to work with you to support school stricts that districts that rely on impact aid programs and promote Financial Stability for these School Districts during the pandemic. I hope we can pass this bill today and get it signed into law. And i yield. Mr. Thune i thank the senator from minnesota. Mr. President , i would ask as if in legislative session, i ask unanimous consent that the senate proceed to the immediate consideration of h. R. 8472, which was received from the house. The presiding officer the clerk will report. The clerk h. R. 8472, an act to provide that due to the disruptions caused by covid19 applications for impact aid funding for fiscal year 2022, may use certain data for fiscal year 2021 application. The presiding officer is there objection to proceeding . Without objection, the senate will proceed. Mr. Thune mr. President , i ask unanimous consent that the bill be considered read a third time and passed and the motion to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table. The presiding officer is there objection . Without objection. Mr. Thune thank you, mr. President. The clerk the undersigned senators in accordance with the provisions of rule 22 of the standing rules of the senate, do hereby move to bring to a close debate on the nomination of Aileen Mercedes cannon of florida to be United States district judge for the Southern District of florida, signed by 17 senators. The presiding officer by unanimous consent, the mandatory quorum call has been waived. The question is, is it the sense of the senate that debate on the nomination of Aileen Mercedes cannon, of florida, to be United States district judge for the Southern District of florida shall be brought to a close. The yeas and nays are mandatory under the rule. The clerk will call the roll. Vote vote vote the presiding officer are there any senators in the chamber wishing to vote or change their vote . Seeing none, the yeas are 57, the nays are 21. And the motion is agreed to. Mr. Blunt madam president . The presiding officer the senator from missouri. Mr. Blunt i dont believe were in a quorum call. The presiding officer we are not. Mr. Blunt i am pleased to be here today, madam president , to talk about the 2021 appropriations bill that we filed this week for labor, for health and human services, and for education. Obviously, with what weve gone through this year, those three agencies have all experienced dramatic challenges the labor challenges, the health challenges, the education challenges and while this bill would not specifically be a covid relief bill, its a bill that funds these agencies so they can move forward with their normal work rather than have to in some piecemeal way move forward while theyre trying to work on the extraordinarily circumstance us of the covid bill. Its the largest bill, labor, h. H. S. , and education is the longerrest nondefense bill on the is the largest nondefense bill on the discretionary side of the agenda. Its about 30 of all the money left when the defense appropriation is taken off the table. There are 11 bills left at that point. But this bill has about 30 of all the money. It has a lot of competing priorities, from apprenticeships to biomedical research, to Public Health and preparedness programs, to child care and special education, national service, Community Service are all in this bill. We received 8,352 requests from senators of things theyd like to see in the bill, and theyre not all in there, but we did all we could to take the money we had and move forward with priorities that make sense. Im disappointed at this point that our democratic colleagues on the Appropriations Committee were unable to support the bill right now, but weve worked together in the past. I hope we can continue to Work Together to find a way forward and frankly my view is if Appropriations Bills appear to have a path to the president s desk, that is the thing that brings us together most quickly. This bill continues in our sixth year of commitment to robustly and consistently Funding Medical Research at the National Institutes of health. We provide a 2 billion increase on that research. We target funding towards alzheimers, toward precision medicine, premature birth research, the brain initiative, and in my time as chairman, weve actually increased n. I. H. Funding by 45 in budgets that often have virtually no increase at all. So weve truly had to Work Together to prioritize. Weve done that. My time has chairman is about my time as chairman is about six years, youre wondering how long it took to get that had a that 45 increase. N. I. H. Was about 22 behind in buying power where they had been a decade earlier. We so made up that 22 and actually now are putting real money on the table in an environment thats never been better and never been more promising in the n. I. H. Research area. We continue our focus of combating opioids. Between 1999 he and 2018, nearly 450,000 people in the United States died from opioid overdose. These Drug Overdose deaths in 2018 was four times higher than in 1999. The bill provides money to deal with this. We saw with the effort we made in this area over the last several years a consistent decrease in opioid overdoses until 2020, and of course the increase in 2020 in many ways related to the pandemic and the isolation, the support structure that appeared to be working to get working to get you moving from dependency no longer there. The bill provides a 20 million increase for apprenticeship programs. This week i joined the Missouri Chamber of commerce in highlighting the importance of apprenticeships. Missouri was the second in the nation in new apprenticeships. First in the nation is california. Were not a small state but were not nearly as big as california. So i think the leadership in our state of the business community, the employers, the governor and others has made a real difference there. We fund both registered apprenticeship programs. Fourth, the bill invests in education from Early Childhood to college and career. It increases funding for highquality child Care Education by 150 million, it increases funding for elementary and secondary Education Programs that provide the most flexibility to School Districts on how to best use those limited resources. This also includes increased investments in title 1, in idea, the individuals with disabilities education act, Charter Schools an impact aid. It increases the pell grant by 250, a 12. 4 increase at a time when the mandatory money is gone. So to find that 2. 4 increase, we have to find that in other programs and some programs were not able to fund and if they are not working, we shouldnt fund them. Weve seen several years of growth in areas where we have a priority, like pell grants, and to do that, we had to look carefully at programs that just frankly werent working. Fifth, we continue our focus on closing the care gap between Mental Health and physical health. Approximately one in five adults in america has a diagnoseable and almost always treatable Mental Health problem. This bill provides men, an money, an crease of almost 200 million in the Mental Health area. I mentioned the excellence of Mental Health pilot. We increased that from eight states. When you deal with a Mental Healths issue like any health issue makes a difference. This year has reinforced again by understanding the need to address disparities in foster care, greater diversity in health Care Education and the workforce. Many populations across the country, whether defined by race, ethnicity, geography, experience higher rates of certain diseases and often lack access to health services. This bill tries to look at that in a way that analyzes where those gaps are and has programs that encourage filling those gaps. Furthermore, the bill continues our efforts to ensure these dispartyies are disparities are addressed through a number of programs, including Workforce Development programs, Diverse Community efforts, Research Initiative focus on underserved communities, programs that target Health Disparities and Education Workforce programs that create opportunity. So, madam president , this bill prioritizes programs that provide the most benefit and greatest return for all americans. The bill continues key Program Integrity activities aimed at reducing waste, fraud, and abuse of taxpayer dollars. These initiatives have returned billions of dollars to the treasury and allowing us to look other places as to how we can fund that money in programs that work better and work more transparently. This bill eliminates eight programs equaling nearly 115 million by focusing on programs that are the most Cost Effective with proven outcomes of we all know that budgets are tight, but making careful choices about Health Spending can be one of the most valuable investments we make as a congress and in the congress. You dont have to look any further, that the recent announcements about the record progress we made finding a vaccine for covid19. Through the cares act and other legislation, congress provided 18 billion for research into therapeutics and vaccines, 12. 5 billion went to vaccines and did it in a way thats going to allow us to set a record in having a safe vaccine available that meets the highest standards. The vaccine that appears to be first in the line for approval is 90 effective. Now, im not an expert in vaccine, so my first thought would be, well, i want a vaccine that is 100 effective. As it turns out, no vaccine is 100 effective. The meeseles vaccine measles vaccine is 90 effective. Health care experts nine os ago said nine months ago said if we could have a vaccine that is 50 effective, we should approve that vaccine and every other one that is at least 50 effective. Were looking at vaccines that will help us move beyond this as we look at tests that help us move beyond this. But the fundamental foundation of all of that is the framework that we maintain. You cant look at a pandemic and say now its time to think about how we do Important Health research. You cant look at a pandemic and say, now its time to think about how we think about having care providers in underserved areas. You cant look at a pandemic and say now its time to begin to think about how you connect child care and work and school all together. This bill does as much of that as we could figure out how to do in the best way we could figure out how to do it. I Hope Congress will pass it. It would be a great gift to the next congress and the administration after january 20 to be able to start next years work rather than having to start next year with this years work. Lets get this years work done. Lets get it done now and lets send a bill to the president that the house and senate have agreed on and lets get back to looking at these bills in the right way at the right time. So, with that, madam president , i would yield the floor. Mrs. Blackburn madam president. The presiding officer the senator from tennessee. Mrs. Blackburn are we currently in a quorum call . The presiding officer we are not. Mrs. Blackburn we are not. Thank you, madam president. When most americans think of the sacrifices that our veterans made in the name of defending freedom, they think of those brave men and women running toward the danger, and we are grateful that in their hearts they have that desire. But as anyone who knows or has worked with veterans know they also make sacrifices that really never bubble to the service or come to our attention. Not only do they sacrifice for their own safety, they give up their personal independence, the comforts of home, their relationship with friends and family, their spouses and their children. Think about what an extraordinary decision theyve made that the safety and security of their fellow countrymen is worth more than losing those precious days. They have made that choice. They put that service and that sacrifice in front of their desires, in front of the desires of their family. They are, indeed, called to serve. These are the people that we should be looking to for comfort and inspiration during difficult times. They really do have experience in that category. They have made those sacrifices, and they have made those choices knowing that it wouldnt be easy and knowing that they may not come home. But when they do come home, that sometimes its tough. It is tough to get back in that groove of where you were, to rekindle those relationships. Our younger veterans in particular were painfully aware of this when they put on the uniform. But you know what . They still made that choice to serve. Here in the senate, weve backed legislation that really has made things easier for so many of our veterans. When i was in the house, i was honored to help shepherd passage of the v. A. Mission act and i was grateful to see that receive bipartisan support here in the senate. It has indeed streamlined many of the processes in the v. A. Health care system. Last month i introduced a bill to provide services to improve Maternal Health outcomes for our female veterans, a population that every single month continues to increase. Back in august, i introduced a bill that will allow our k2 veterans to obtain the special Health Screenings they need to check for cancer and other illnesses caused by exposure to toxic substances in uzbekistan. In fact, this has been a great year for veteran support. We have passed or are very close to passing legislation that will improve and simplify doctorpatient relationships, record keeping, Mental Health services, and make those and other important benefits more accessible to our veterans and their families. If youre not already supporting these efforts, i encourage my colleagues to support this legislation. As the week draws to a close, i would encourage everyone to seek out veteran stories and to internalize the knowledge that the sacrifices they made were for us. There is so much we can learn from those who have served. There is so much that they have done to help preserve our way of life and our freedoms. It is so much that they have done for the values and the institutions, things that really do transcend politics. I reached out to many of our veterans this week and had great conversations and heard from veterans online. I heard from william, a tennessean who proudly served in the air force. He said his service was the best decision of his entire life. I also heard from gregg who served as a c130 crew chief in theater during desert storm. He put off his College Education when he was asked to serve. And i would be remiss if i did not recognize the veterans who are currently serving in our office dana magnuson, john clement, jay strebino, dr. Karen summer, and paris cerventes. I thank each and every one of them for theirs service and for the continued work that they do on behalf of all tennesseans. These brave men and women represent the hope of a nation and our promise to the rest of the world that no matter what, the United States stands ready and willing to answer the call. I yield the floor and note the absence of a quorum. The presiding officer the clerk will call the roll. Quorum call quorum call the presiding officer the senator from ohio. The senate is currently in a quorum call. Mr. Portman i ask unanimous consent the qirl be dispensed with. The presiding officer without objection. Mr. Portman i have come to the floor again today to talk about the need for us as a congress to come together to address this coronavirus pandemic. We have an Unprecedented Health care and economic crisis right now, and its important for us to figure out what we can do, what we can agree on, and then move forward. Since this pandemic began back in march, i am told i have come to the floor now 17 separate times to urge my colleagues to Work Together on a bipartisan basis to try to put together legislation that will enable us to respond effectively and in a focused way to the covid19 crisis. We had some early successes. Remember the cares act that was passed back in march. That was eight months ago. Eight months ago. Really for the last six months, we havent passed anything that addresses this crisis, and yet the crisis has ebbed and flowed, and right now unfortunately its at an alltime high in my state of ohio. I have been frustrated. We cant have that same sense of urgency and willingness to Work Together as we had during those first several months of the coronavirus pandemic. It seemed to have disappeared as we entered election season, didnt it . So as we got closer and closer to the election, there was more and more divide and inability to come together. Now we need to get back to that sense of bipartisanship, i would even say nonpartisanship on so much of this and cooperation for the good of our country. Its getting worse, as i said, in my state of ohio and around the country, and i believe we can make a difference, and thats important. There is things we can do at the federal level that would help. Right now, were averaging in this country over 100,000 new cases per day. Thats double the rate from just one month ago. It was predicted as it got colder and people were inside more the third wave has arrived. In ohio, the number of daily new cases has risen every day for the past month. Just last night, Ohio Governor mike dewine reported nearly 6,000 new cases in the last 24hour period, compared to 1,000 cases per day the state was experiencing just at the beginning of october. Unfortunately, its not just about new cases. Were seeing increases in hospitalizations. Were seeing increases in patients that are in the i. C. U. Units. Were seeing increases, sadly, in fatalities. We need to do more to help this economy, too, because the economy, as the pandemic has worsened, has begun to slow. Initially, we had impressive economic growth, no question about it, but its begun to slow at a time when the economy is still down 10 million jobs since february. Think about that. Were still 10 million jobs short from where we were in february. What we really dont want is for those 10 Million People to become longterm unemployed who may never reenter the workforce. Thats why its important to act and act now. Unemployment claims which were going down, by the way, seems to have more or less flattened in most states, including ohio. Ohios unemployment rate, were told, for the most recent month we have data for, which is september, was still above 8 . I think its better now, but its still way too high. And of course, certain sectors of the economy like hospitality, travel, and entertainment are really struggling badly, with no end in sight as some states begin to reimplement the stricter social distancing measures and some states are even putting back in place closures. If youre in the hospitality business, entertainment business, travel business, you are concerned right now. To counter the spread of the virus, these closures are also going to have a terrible Economic Impact on businesses and on families. These dangerous trends are putting peoples lives and livelihoods at risk if we cant start to reverse them, and again, its been six months since we came together in any kind of a package, eights months since the cares package. I believe there are some in congress including, i believe, the speaker of the house who are not interested in seeing a comprehensive package passed before the election. They thought it would be good politics, i guess, for President Trump. I dont know. If you look at the results of the election, i think it might have been just the opposite. But the point is the election is now behind us, so if that was the reason, lets forget that. Lets get something done here. Lets get this partisan gridlock off the docket on this issue, and lets focus on whats good for the American People. This is whats called the lameduck session of congress. Thats a good time to do it. Were past the election and yet the new congress hasnt come on yet. Lets Work Together in good faith toward a federal response thats, again, focused and targeted. We can find some Common Ground here. I believe the best path forward is very close to what has been embodied in some of these more targeted proposals, including the ones that we have put on the floor repeatedly here since way back in august. These bills are cliewf of some of the most important bipartisan priorities like providing needed funding for vaccine and therapy development, like replenishing the successful p. P. P. Program for small businesses. It was included in the cares act, by the way, but it was expired back in august. On august 9, the paycheck protection program, p. P. P. , actually expired. For these struggling small businesses, they have got nowhere to turn. How about providing funding to the schools . Thats bipartisan. How about being sure that we have folks who are able to come together to help ensure that we have Adequate Funding for this exciting new Vaccine Development were hearing about . Anyway, when we tried to bring these to the floor, the other side has blocked even entering into a debate about it. Instead, democrats have insisted on the housepassed heroes act which passed in may with almost no republican support, which makes a bunch of controversial changes to policies unrelated to coronavirus repealing state and local Tax Deduction to den mostly wealthy americans, making unprecedented changes to immigration law. What do these policies have to do with coronavirus . Nothing. At a time of unprecedented deficits and debt, it makes those changes with a price tag of 3. 5 trillion. Now, some say well, the speaker is now down to 2. 4 trillion. Folks, whatever that number is, thats going to be unprecedented. We have never had anything that expensive pass the congress. Its at a time again where we have the highest deficit we have ever had. Our debt as a percent of our g. D. P. Sadly is 100 of our g. D. P. Which hasnt been since world war ii. We are past the contentious election season now, so lets put aside the politics and lets build a targeted bipartisan coronavirus bill paved on what we all agree works and what we agree is really needed in the face of a rapidly spreading virus. Here are a few examples of what we could do. First, our next coronavirus package should have a healthy working place tax credit in it. We want people back to work, back to school, back in the hospitals. This would really help the bars, restaurants, salons, bowlingal east, and other businesses to reopen safely and stay open by basically compensating them for the purchase of hand sanitizers like p. P. P. And face shields and gloves. And other measures to allow for social distancing. As businesses prepare to winterize their outdoor spaces in order to prevent the spread of covid, this payroll tax credit would help offset those costs and help businesses stay open. Just what we need to help keep our economy afloat. This is i think the sweet spot. I think everyone agrees, i hope, that we should go back to work, back to school, go back to the hospitals and so on, but we need to do it safely. Thats what this does. Shouldnt that be bipartisan, even nonpartisan . Second, we should invest heavily in testing and Contact Tracing so the states are better equipped to respond to this surge of outbreaks. Republicans and democrats alike know that fast and accurate tests are critical to stopping the spread of this disease and getting people more comfortable going back to shopping, going back to work, going back to school, going back to a more normal life. The targeted bill again that we introduced last month that democrats blocked had 16 billion set aside for testing and tracing. We could use those resources right now in ohio. I spoke to governor dewine earlier this week, we want the money for testing. We need it. Lets pass it now. Third, we also need help to continue the development of these treatments and these vaccines as quickly as possible. The recent news of a potential vaccine by pfizer with a 90 efficacy is really promising. We cant take our foot off the gas on this. If we cannot address the Underlying Health Care Challenge of the coronavirus, were going to be stuck playing defense against this disease for a long time. The targeted bill from last month included 37 billion for Vaccine Development and distribution and 20 billion for therapies, which i think are really good starting points for us to at least debate what the final number should be, but lets help right now to ensure we dont slow down the vaccines from therapy and be sure the distribution works. In the face of a virus that seems like its getting more and more out of hand every day, these proposals are examples. The tax credit to safely reopen businesses. Money for improved testing and tracing. Money for vaccine and therapy development. These all seem like commonsense ideas. I dont see a reason why a majority in this chamber cant come together and build a bipartisan response based on these kinds of simple policies. Whatever we do, we cant afford to delay any longer. American lives are at stake, and we are in danger of losing ground where we gain it on the coronavirus as this third wave threat ens my home state of ohio and our country. Lets not wait any longer. Lets come together and once again get something done that helps the people we represent. Mr. Casey madam president. The presiding officer the senator from pennsylvania. Mr. Casey madam president , i rise today to urge this body to pass h. R. 1773, 1773, the rosie the riveter congressional gold medal act. This bill would honor the american women who join the work force in support of the war effort during world war ii. Millions of women dedicated themselves to strengthening our nation and answered the call to action by joining the workforce and learning new jobs. Many of these women built the vehicles, the weaponry, and the ammunition that were critical to the war effort. Whether they worked on Assembly Lines, addressed the troops medical needs, or tended to ships and farms, rosies ensured the country continued functioning during the war while often serve as the primary caretakers for their children. These rosie the riveters rose to the challenge and set a powerful example, both to working women and for all americans. Rosies not only faced genderbased discrimination, but rosies of color fought racial discrimination. All while manufacturing planes, ships, tanks, weapons, jeeps, and Everything Else that was needed to defeat the enemy in world war ii. Today their example continues to inspire generations to embody the, quote, we can do it, unquote, spirit. The rosies are among our nations greatest living heroines. They deserve recognition and formal commendation for their service to our country while they are still with us. The rosies that are still alive are in their 90s, and we need to honor them now. The house version of the rosie the riveter c. G. M. Act passed a year ago on november 13, 2019, by unanimous consent and with broad bipartisan cosponsorship. The senate version, s. 892, which i introduced last year, has 76 cosponsors. Including 36 republicans as well as all 26 women serving in the senate of both parties. This body has already made clear its overwhelming support for the bill. Each state contributed to the war effort, and each state has rosies awaiting this award. Id like to tell you about a rosie the riveter from my home state of pennsylvania. Ill just put up a poster of a picture of her. As i said, she is a pennsylvanian. Her name is may crier from bucks county, southeastern pennsylvania. Now may worked in a boeing factory where she helped bake b17 and b29 warplanes. As a teenager during world war ii. May is now 94 years old and has been working to recognize and honor her fellow rosies not for years. Shes been working on this for decades. May is a patriot, and may is now serving her country yet again during another crisis. She has spent the better part of this year making face masks for those who need them. These polka dot masks are reminiscent of the bandanna worn in the we can do it poster. May is the embodiment of the we can do it spirit. From over 70 years from the boeing Assembly Line to her sewing machine today. May has devoted herself to the betterment of the nation. She and her fellow rosies have earned this congressional gold medal. Many of mays friends have passed away without the recognition that they are worthy of. Thousands more are eagerly awaiting the passage of this bill, in addition to the families of the rosies who have died. This honor has already been delayed for far too long. I urge my colleagues to pass this important timesensitive legislation. And so, madam president , as if in legislative session, i ask unanimous consent that the committee on banking, housing, and urban affairs be discharged and the senate proceed to the immediate consideration of h. R. 1773. The presiding officer the clerk will report. The clerk h. R. 1773, an act to award a congressional gold medal collectively to the women in the United States who joined the workforce during world war ii and so forth. The presiding officer is there objection to the proceeding . Without objection, the committee is discharged, the senate will proceed. Mr. Casey i ask unanimous consent that the bill be considered read a third time and passed, and that the motion to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table. The presiding officer is there objection . Without objection. Mr. Casey thank you, and i yield the floor. And i would note the absence of a quorum. The presiding officer the clerk will call the roll. Quorum call mr. Toomey madam president , i ask unanimous consent to vitiate the quorum call. The presiding officer without objection. Mr. Toomey and i ask unanimous consent that the vote begin now. The presiding officer is there objection . Without objection. Under the previous order, all postcloture time has expired. The question is on the nomination. Is there a sufficient second . There appears to be. The clerk will call the roll. Vote vote vote vote the presiding officer are there any senators in the chamber wishing to vote or wishing to change their vote . Seeing none, the yeas are 56, the nays are 21. The nomination is confirmed. Under the previous order, the motion to reconsider is considered made and laid upon the table, and the president will be notified immediately of the senates actions. Mr. Mcconnell madam president. The presiding officer the majority leader. Mr. Mcconnell i ask unanimous consent the senate proceed to legislative session for a period of morning business, with senators permitted to speak therein for up to ten minutes each. The presiding officer without objection. Mr. Mcconnell i move to proceed to executive session to consider calendar number 892. The presiding officer the question is on the motion. All in favor say aye. Opposed no. The ayes appear to have it. The ayes do have it. The motion disproit. The clerk will report the nomination. The clerk nomination, the judiciary, Kristi Haskins johnson to be United States district judge for the Southern District of mississippi. Mr. Mcconnell i send a cloture motion to the desk. The presiding officer the clerk will report. The clerk cloture motion. We, the the undersigned senators, in accordance with the provisions of rule 22 of the standing rules of the senate, do hereby move to bring to a close debate on the nomination of Kristi Haskins johnson of mississippi to be United States district judge for the Southern District of mississippi, signed by 17 senators as follows mr. Mcconnell i ask consent the reading of the names be waived. The presiding officer without objection. Mr. Mcconnell i move to proceed to legislative session. The presiding officer the question is on the motion. All in favor say aye. Opposed no. The ayes appear to have it. The ayes do have it. The motion is agreed to. Mr. Mcconnell i move to proceed to executive session to consider calendar 891. The presiding officer the question is on the motion. All in favor say aye. Opposed no. The ayes appear to have it. The ayes do have it. The motion is agreed to. The clerk will report the nomination. The clerk nomination, the judiciary, Benjamin Joel beaton of kentucky to be United States district judge for the Western District of kentucky. Mr. Mcconnell i send a cloture motion to the desk. The presiding officer the clerk will report. The clerk cloture motion. We, the undersigned senators, in accordance with the provisions of rule 22 of the standing rules of the senate, do hereby move to bring to a close debate on the nomination of benefiting gin joel beaton of of Benjamin Joel beaton of kentucky to be United States district judge for the Western District of kentucky. Mr. Mcconnell i ask consent the reading of the names be waived. The presiding officer without objection. Mr. Mcconnell i move to legislative session. The presiding officer the question is on the motion. All in favor say aye. Opposed no. The ayes appear to have it. The ayes do have it. The motion is agreed to. Mr. Mcconnell i move to proceed to executive session to consider calendar 760. The presiding officer the question is on the motion. All in favor say aye. Opposed no. The ayes appear to have it. The ayes do have it. The motion is agreed to. The clerk will report the nomination. The clerk nomination, Federal Reserve system, judy shelton of california to be a member of the board of governors. Mr. Mcconnell i send a cloture motion to the desk. The presiding officer the clerk will report. The clerk cloture motion, we, the undersigned senators in accordance with the provisions of rule 22 of the standing rules of the senate do hereby move to bring to a close debate on the nomination of judy shelton of california to be a member of the board of governors of the Federal Reserve system. Signed by 17 senators as follows. Mr. Mcconnell i ask consent the reading of the names be waived. The presiding officer without objection. Mr. Mcconnell i move to proceed to legislative session. The presiding officer the question is on the motion. All in favor say aye. Opposed no. The ayes appear to have it. The ayes do have it. The motion is agreed to. Mr. Mcconnell i move to proceed to executive session to consider calendar 862. The presiding officer the question is on the motion. All in favor say aye. Opposed no. The ayes appear to have it. The ayes do have it. The motion is agreed to. The clerk will report the nomination. The clerk nomination, the judiciary, toby crouse of kansas to be a United States district judge for the grict of kansas. Mr. Mcconnell i extend a cloture motion to the desk. The presiding officer the clerk will report clerk we, the undersigned senators in accordance with the provisions of rule 22 of the standing rules of the senate do hereby move to bring to a close debate on the nomination of toby crouse of kansas to be United States district judge for the district of kansas signed by 17 senators as follows. Mr. Mcconnell i ask consent reading of the names be waived. The presiding officer without objection. Mr. Mcconnell i move to proceed to legislative session. The presiding officer the question is on the nomination. The question is on the motion. All in favor say aye. Opposed no. The ayes appear to have it. The ayes do have it. The motion is agreed to. Mr. Mcconnell i move to proceed to executive session to consider calendar 566. The presiding officer the question is on the motion. All in favor say aye. Opposed no. The ayes appear to have it. The ayes do have it. The motion is agreed to. The clerk will report the nomination. The clerk nomination, the judiciary. Stephen a. Vaden of tennessee to be a judge of the United States court ever national trade. Mr. Mcconnell i send a cloture motion to the desk. The presiding officer the clerk will report. The clerk cloture motion, we the yiengs in undersigned senators in accordance with the provisions of rule 22 of the standing rules of the senate do hereby move to bring to a close debate on the nomination of stephen a. Individualen of tennessee to be a judge ever the United States court of International Trade signed by 17 senators as follows. Mr. Mcconnell i ask consent the reading of the names be waived. The presiding officer without objection. Mr. Mcconnell i move to proceed to legislative session. The presiding officer the question is on the motion. All those in favor say aye. Opposed no. The ayes appear to have it. The ayes do have it. The motion is agreed to. Mr. Mcconnell i move to proceed to executive session to consider calendar 894. The presiding officer the question is on the motion. All those in favor say aye. Opposed no. The ayes appear to have it. The ayes do have it. The motion is agreed to. The clerk will report the nomination. The clerk nomination, the judiciary. Kathryn kimbal mizelle of florida to be United States district judge for the middle district of florida. Mr. Mcconnell i sent a cloture motion to the desk. The presiding officer the clerk will report. The clerk cloture motion, we, the undersigned senators in accordance with the provisions of rule 22 of the standing rules of the senate do hereby move to bring to a close debate on the nomination of Kathryn Kimbal Mizelle of florida to be United States district judge for the middle district of florida signed by 17 senators as follows. Mr. Mcconnell i ask consent the reading of the names be waived. The presiding officer without objection. Mr. Mcconnell i move to proceed to legislative session. The presiding officer the question is on the motion. All those in favor say aye. Opposed no. The ayes appear to have it. The ayes do have it. The motion is agreed to. Mr. Mcconnell i move to proceed to executive session to consider calendar 893. The presiding officer the question is on the motion. All those in favor say aye. Opposed no. The ayes appear to have it. The ayes do have it. The motion is agreed to. The clerk will report the nomination. The clerk nomination, the jury, taylor b. Mcneel of mississippi to be United States district judge for the Southern District of mississippi. Mr. Mcconnell i send a cloture motion to the desk. The presiding officer the clerk will report. The clerk cloture motion, we, the undersigned senators in accordance with the provisions of rule 22 of the standing rules of the senate do hereby move to bring to a close debate on the nomination of taylor b. Mcneel of mississippi to be United States district judge for the Southern District of mississippi signed by 17 senators as follows. Mr. Mcconnell i ask consent the reading of the names be waived. The presiding officer without objection. Mr. Cornyn madam president . The presiding officer the senator from texas. Mr. Cornyn madam president , the world is celebrating major developments in the global race for a vaccine. All year since this pandemic hit, our greatest Scientific Minds have been working around the clock to develop a vaccine that will finally bring the pandemic and the crisis associated with it to an end. Researchers are testing dozens of vaccines in the hope of finding at least one that can stop the spread of the virus which has claimed more than 1. 2 million lives worldwide and nearly 240,000 here in the United States alone. Early data from pfizers vaccine trial gives us a lot of reasons to be hopeful. The Company Announced on monday that their vaccine was more than 90 effective in preventing the disease. For reference, standard flu vaccines for seasonal flu typically are 40 to 60 effective. So 90 is a big deal. This breakthrough is a testament to the ingenuity and the near universal commitment to try to find a vaccine that will eliminate the threat of this pandemic and its a sign of hope for all people around the world. Later this month, once pfizer has collected the recommended two months of safety data, the Company Plans to request emergency authorization for the vaccine from the food and Drug Administration. By the end of the year they will have manufactured enough doses to immunize 15 million to 20 Million People. Congress has made Tremendous Investments in the development of therapeutics and a vaccine through the cares act. And im incredibly proud of the men and women who have led this fight on the front lines, including in my state of texas. During preClinical Trials over the summer, scientists at Texas Biomedical Research institute in san antonio tested the Pfizer Vaccine on monkeys with impressive results. Dr. Depack kashal who oversaw the study said they saw a 100 protection rate in the monkeys that were given the Pfizer Vaccine. Once it was ready for human trials, hundreds of texans volunteered to be vaccinated. Nearly 200 patients from austin had participated in the study. The university of Texas Medical Branch at galveston has enrolled more than 500 participants. In three sights in gal vesson, league city, and clear lake and hundreds more from the dallasfort worth area have volunteered to be part of the trial. One of those texans is a woman named andrea lucia who received her first dose of the vaccine from a clinic in keller, texas in late september and returned for the second dose three weeks later. Like other volunteers in a double blind study where half get a placebo and the other half get the vaccine, andrea doesnt know if she received the vaccine or not. But every week shes asked if she has any symptoms. Andrea said shell have occasional followup appointments over the next year and a half. Once the vaccine becomes publicly available, shell find out if she received it already through the Clinical Trials. I want to thank andrea and thousands of men and women like her who volunteered to test these vaccines in the ongoing Clinical Trials. Theyve risked their own health to ensure the word can access a safe and effective vaccine as quickly as possible. And of course subject to a determination by the food and Drug Administration that it is safe and effective. Of course, none of this would be possible without the brilliant researchers, scientists, doctors and nurses who sprinted at full speed in the race for this vaccine for months on end. America is proud of their heroic work and well keep cheering them on and supporting their work as the race for a vaccine continues. Finally, madam president , while the election updates have dominated headlines over the last week or so, the work of the 116th congress is far from being finished. As i mentioned yesterday, my top priority is to pass another Coronavirus Relief package. We need to ensure that our researchers and scientists have the resources they need to continue to make progress on the therapeutics and eventual vaccine. And the money and the Logistical Organization needed to deploy the vaccine once it is finally approved. And i expect that there will not be just one vaccine but hopefully multiple vaccines available. And we also need to make sure that there are ongoing economic recovery keeps trending in the right direction. While addressing this pandemic should be our top priority, we cant take our eyes off of other threats. Over the last few months, ive been working with a Bipartisan Group of senators and others in the house to advance legislation to address our vulnerabilities in one of our most critical supply chains. This is one of the most significant lessons this virus has taught us, the vulnerability of some critical supply chains. One of those is for semiconductors. Regardless of how much the average consumer knows about semiconductors, these chips, these integrated circuits are everywhere. Theyre in the technology from everything including our cell phone to the advanced weapon systems that support our National Security and defense. But for all the ways our dependence on products that use semiconductors has grown, so has our vulnerability because u. S. Production of these chips has declined over the last two decades. It will come as no surprise that other countries have stepped in to fill the void and china has gone from manufacturing zero semiconductors to 16 of the worlds supply. You can bet they dont plan to stop there. China is preparing to invest another 1. 4 trillion in Semi Conductor technologies. And if youre looking for a reason why this is so dangerous, just look at the personal protective equipment shortages we faced at the start of this pandemic. Need was so high that hospitals asked the public to help boost their supplies taking donations from folks who had extra boxes of n95 masks in their garages and gloves from salons that had closed their doors to help in the mitigation efforts. We didnt reach that point because of a lack of preparation by hospitals but rather because of our reliance, our dependence, if you will, on other countries, notably china, to produce this medical gear. It has been a wakeup call and a reminder that we need to take action today to protect our most critical supply chains from similar vulnerabilities. If were going to regain lost ground in Semiconductor Manufacturing, its going to require a strategic investment by the federal government. Thats where the legislation i introduced with our colleague, the senior senator from virginia, senator warner. Its called the chips for america act and it creates a federal Incentive Program through the department of commerce to encourage Semiconductor Manufacturing in the United States. This will, we hope, help stimulate domestic advance Semiconductor Manufacturing and boost both our National Security and our Global Economic competitiveness. We worked hand in glove with senator cotton from arkansas, senator schumer, the democratic leader in drafting an amendment that was adopted by the whole senate by a vote of 964 on the National Defense authorization bill. So as you can see, this is a priority for both republicans and democrats in the house and in the senate. And im optimistic that it will head to the president s desk with the full National Defense authorization act in the coming weeks. But that just means were halfway there. The next step is funding. Im working with colleague on both sides to ensure we can provide full funding for this legislation. And finally restore American Leadership in Semiconductor Manufacturing. This is key to our longterm National Security and economic competitiveness and it will be one of my Top Priorities in the coming weeks as the senate prepares to consider Appropriations Bills. Its no longer possible, madam president , for us just to leave this to sort of a laissezfaire free market economics. Our competitors, notably communist china, is investing billions of dollars in everything from 5g to Artificial Intelligence to quantum computers. They dont have to go through a democratic or constitutional process like we do in order to appropriate money for that purpose. And i just think its time for us to rethink and maybe reset the way we view our vulnerabilities and our need to be competitive and indeed to win that competition with countries like communist china, which do not play by the same set of rules as we do. Before the end of the year, i also hope we can get another piece of legislation across the finish line called the jenna quinn law. Senator hassan of New Hampshire is my partner on this particular bill. Its named for an inspiring texan named for the more than 42 million adults of child sexual abuse nationwide. These victims often stay silent, for months, years, or some for even a life time. As a result, they and countless other victims are continue to be subjected to abuse. Jenna has devoted her life to interrupting this cycle. She was the driving force behind a state law in texas which requires training for teachers and owe adults that work with children on how to recognize and report child sexual abuses. The signs of child sexual abuse are unique and correctly identifying these signs is integral to bringing children out of an abusive situation. After our state law passed in 2009, one study found educators reported child sexual abuse at a rate almost four times as greater after training than they did before training. It was one of the first child sexual abuse prevention laws in the United States to mandate such training and now more than half of the states have adopted some form of the law. You may ask, if states are passing the law, why do we need to pass one at the federal level . Many states simply dont have funding for these programs, but jenna quinn law, when we pass it out of the house and it is signed by the president will change that. Grants will be used for specialized training for students, teachers, and caregivers to learn how to identify, safely report and hopefully prevent future child sexual abuse. It encourages states with similar without similar laws, excuse me, to implement innovative programs to address child sexual abuse. The jenna quinn law passed the Senate Unanimously here in september and common sense would lied you to think it would pass in would lead you to think it would pass in the house and land on the president s desk without delay. Unfortunately, common sense doesnt always prevail here in washington. Some in the house have chosen to hold this lifesaving legislation in an effort to advance a partisan bill that has no chances of passing in the senate. Thats what many people hate about this place, holding hostage a consensus, bipartisan child Sexual Assault victims bill, holding that hostage to advance another bill that has no chance of passage. We all know that an allornothing approach here in washington particularly in congress e. Leaves you in the end with nothing. When this comes to child sexual abuse, that should not be an option. As ive said before, this is a bipartisan bill that received unanimous support here in the senate. Ive worked with several House Democrats on this legislation, including congresswoman susan wilde, who is the lead sponsor, and congresswoman hailey stevens, both of whom are members of the committee that has now so far even taken the bill up in the house. Ive also been joined by two fellow texan, Michael Mccaul and john wright whove seen the incredible impact the law has had in our state. I hope our democratic colleagues will push back on their leaders who are basically dragging their feet on this legislation, get it passed, and so we can save lives. As families have isolated at home during the pandemic, signs of abuse have been harder and harder to identify. Teachers, education professionals and other support staff at schools like bus drivers are responsible for more than half of the child sexual abuse reports, but obviously if our children arent going to the classroom, those reports are declining. Children at home during a pandemic, out of sight from their teachers and other adults who would otherwise see them on a routine basis, weve seen a 40 decrease in reports compared to the same time last year. Well, normally that would be great news, any reduction in reports of child sexual abuse would be great news. But based on everything we know about the stresses and circumstances created by this pandemic and the fact that the children have to be in school to get identified as being a victim, this reduction in reports is distressing for all the obvious reasons. Its just not being identified or reported like it should be. The need to pass this legislation to help our most vulnerable escape the cycle of abuse has never been greater. So i would urge all of our colleagues and particularly our house colleagues to pass the jenna quinn law without delay so we can get to to the president s desk so week provide the so we can provide the help that child victims of sexual abuse need as soon as possible. Mr. Kaine madam president . The presiding officer the senator from virginia. Mr. Kaine madam president , on november 9, 2016, i had one of the most memorable experiences of my life. I stood on a hotel stage in new york city and, as my partys nominee for Vice President , introduced secretary Hillary Clinton to address her supporters and the nation for a concession speech. The polls in the western United States had just been closed ford about ten hours, and it was a mere eight hours after news organizations had called the 2016 election for donald trump. Hillary clinton had made history. She was the first woman nominee of a major party for president. And she had won the popular vote by millions of votes. She was also deeply concerned about the election itself. Candidate donald trump had openly solicited help from a foreign adversary to win the election, and while the dimensions of the foreign Misinformation Campaign were not yet fully clerks the nations clear, the nations Intelligence Community had publicly warned that a foreign nation was actively involved in trying to create chaos and division in the american electorate. But Hillary Clinton was and is a patriotic american. She knew that she was behind by nearly 77,000 votes in the key states of pennsylvania, michigan, and wisconsin. And she knew that it was highly unlikely that recounts would change any of those three deficits in any appreciatable way. Appreciable way. I watched secretary struggle with with the war between her personal feelings and her ernest search for what was right for the country. And i struggled with those same feelings. I was proud of secretary clinton when she walked to a microphone and said these words last night i congratulated donald trump and offered to work with him on behalf of our country. I hope that he will be a successful president for all americans. This is not the outcome we wanted or we worked so hard for, and im sorry that we did not win the election for the values we share and the vision we hold for our country. Weve seen that our nation is more deeply divided than we thought. But i still believe in america, and i always will. And if you do, then we must accept this result and then look to the future. Donald trump is going to be our next president. We owe him an open mind and a chance to lead. Our constitutional democracy enshrines the peaceful transfer of power, and we dont just respect that; we cherish it. It takes a strong moral compass to quickly set aside personal disappointment and choose country over your own personal feelings. Hillary clinton demonstrated leadership that day. I take the floor today to ask why donald trump wont put the country over his personal feelings . But i particularly want to ask my Republican Senate colleagues, why wont you ask the president of your party to do the right thing and put the interests of the country over personal or partisan pursuits . Its now nine days after election day. Its five days since all major news organizations called the president ial election for joe biden and Kamala Harris. Donald trump is now behind in the popular vote by more than five million votes, and that number is rising. Some suggest that the ultimate margin will be closer to seven million votes. Donald trump is behind in the key states of pennsylvania, michigan, and wisconsin not by the 77,000vote margin of four years ago but by nearly 2240,000 votes and 220,000 votes and that number is climbing every day. Donald trump has lost two other key states that he won no 23016 georgia and arizona. And yet how is President Trump acting . Like a spoiled child. But it is not just a childish refusal to concede a loss. In his weakness, he is willing to speak and act in ways destructive to our democracy. He has not reached out to president elect biden. He has not conceded. He and his White House Team are instructing federal agencies not to cooperate with the biden transition. He is not allowing congressional appropriated moneys to be used by the biden transition. He is spreading unfounded rumors about voter fraud or irregularities without meaningful evidence. He is trashing hardworking election officials, even republican officials, with his baseless claims. And as reported yesterday by military. Com, he leave legal his legal team is branding as fraudulent ballots sent in by american men and women and their families. Just as ominous, President Trump is starting a purge of officials at the pentagon beginning with the firing of defense secretary mark esper. The officials that the president is now jamming into shortterm acting roles at the pentagon include some who are unqualified and some who even republican members. Senate Armed Services committee of the senate Armed Services committee have previously determined are unfit to serve. These actions send a message of chaos and instability to adversaries around the world at the very time when the u. S. Should be trying to send a message of calm and order. It is futile to ask President Trump to put country over his personal interests. He has not been willing to do that. But i do ask my Senate Republican colleagues, wont you concede that the country has elected a new president . Wont you speak out against baseless claims of voter fraud that whip up dangerous division at home, demean hardworking election officials, and paint an embarrassing picture of the United States around the world . Wont you demand that the Trump Administration allow the Biden Transition Team to resources that we in congress have provided to assist in that important task . Wont you ask the president to avoid massive firings or other personnel actions in the lameduck period that heighten the sense of american instability . Wont you stand up for the proposition that peaceful transfer of power are a sacred part of our American Heritage . I recently took a look at comments that i made on the floor at this very spot on february 4. I was worried then, but my comments read even more frightening now. I stood here to explain my vote for impeachment. I said then, unchallenged evil spreads like a virus. We have allowed a toxic president to infect the senate and warp its behavior. An acquittal will lead to worse behavior. The acquittal of this president has led to worse behavior. He is also to demean our democracy in the eyes of the world because he is too weak to acknowledge that he lost an election. But there is still time for the senate to be the adult leaders that this nation so badly needs. Patriotic and mature leadership will not come from the president or the administration. The senate must provide it. And in the senate at this moment, strong Republican Leadership to condemn President Trump foolishness is key. When we democrats stand up against the president , it makes little difference. We just get discounted by the president and his supporters. They are quickly forming a dangerous lost cause mythology about a stolen election. Every Single Member of this chamber knows that the myth that is being perpetrated is a lie. But some people will fall for the myth unless republicans are willing to stand up and call out the lie. The next ten weeks are filled with peril. With covid cases rising, hospitalizations increasing, deaths, tragically multiplying, and people in businesses suffering, we should be laser focused on crushing this virus and rebuilding the american economy. The u. S. Does not have the luxury to engage in conspiracy theories and multiple bogus election challenges. To my colleagues, especially my republican colleagues, the nation needs the senate right now to send a message of calm, transition calm transition to a new administration. Please put our country first. With that, mr. President , i yield the floor and i note the absence of a quorum. The presiding officer the clerk will call the roll. Quorum call request. Quorum quorum call quorum call quorum call quorum call quorum call the presiding officer the senator from missouri. Mr. Blunt i ask unanimous consent that the senate proceed to legislative session no, to suspend the quorum call. The presiding officer without objection. Mr. Blunt and now i ask unanimous consent that the senate proceed to legislative session and be in a period of morning business with senators permitted to speak therein for up to ten minutes each. The presiding officer without objection. Mr. Blunt i ask unanimous consent that the appropriate committees be discharged and the senate proceed to the immediate consideration of the following resolution en bloc. S. Res. 716, s. Res. 717, s. Res. 746, s. Res. 764, s. Res. 765, s. Res. 766, and s. Res. 767. The presiding officer without objection, the committees are discharged and the senate will proceed to the resolutions en bloc. Mr. Blunt i know of no further debate on the measures en bloc. The presiding officer if there is no further debate, the question is on the resolutions en bloc. All in favor say aye. All opposed no. The ayes appear to have it. The ayes do have it. The resolutions are adopted en bloc. Mr. Blunt i ask unanimous consent that the preambles be agreed to en bloc and that the motion to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table, all en bloc. The presiding officer without objection. Mr. Blunt i ask unanimous consent that the senate now proceed to the en bloc consideration of the following Senate Resolutions which were submitted earlier today. S. Res. 768, s. Res. 769, s. Res. 770, s. Res. 771, s. Res. 772, s. Res. 773. The presiding officer without objection, the senate will proceed to the resolutions en bloc. Mr. Blunt i know of no further debate on the measures en bloc. The presiding officer if there is no further debate, the question is on the resolutions en bloc. All in favor say aye. All opposed no. The ayes appear to have it. The ayes do have it. The resolutions are adopted en bloc. Mr. Blunt i ask unanimous consent that the preambles be agreed to en bloc, and that the motions to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table, all en bloc. The presiding officer without objection. Mr. Blunt mr. President. I will eventually ask unanimous consent. Mr. Blunt mr. President , i note the absence of a quorum. The presiding officer the clerk will call the roll. Quorum call quorum call mr. Blunt mr. President . The presiding officer the senator from missouri. Mr. Blunt i move to suspend the quorum. The presiding officer without objection. Mr. Blunt i ask unanimous consent that when the senate completes its business today, it adjourn until 3 00 p. M. On monday, november 16. Further, following the prayer and pledge, the morning hour be deemed expired, the journal of proceedings to be approved to date, and the time for the two leaders be reserved for their use later in the day and the morning business be closed. Further, following leader remarks, the senate proceed to executive session and resume consideration of the johnson nomination. Further, notwithstanding rule 22, the cloture motions filed during todays session of the senate ripen at 5 30 p. M. On monday. The presiding officer without objection. Mr. Blunt if theres no further business to come before the senate, i ask that it stand adjourned until the provisions of s. Res. 770 as further mark of respect to the late mark andrews, former senator of the state of north dakota. The presiding officer under the previous order, and pursuant to Senate Resolution 770, the Senate Stands adjourned until 3 00 p. M. On monday, november 16 and does so as a further mark of respect to the late mark andrews, former senator from northmcconnell mr. President. The presiding officer the majority leader. Mr. Mcconnell last week the mr. Mcconnell last week the last week the country in the world received some really great news. Major American Drug company, together with a german partner announced a covid19 vaccine appears to be at least 90 effective in trials thats 90 . These results are extraordinary